OVERVIEW
Volcano is a clever, puzzle-style game in which players move "caps"
around on top of a group of volcanoes, triggering eruptions which
cause colored streams of lava to flow out across the playing field.
The object of the game is to capture as many pieces as possible,
with bonus points awarded for special combinations. Each
player attempts to accumulate the highest score and then bring
the game to a close before another player has a chance to steal
the lead away. Multi-player Volcano supports any number
of players, though between 2 and 6 is best. It can be also
played by a single player as a solitaire challenge.

SETUP
Using all of the pieces except the black ones, create 25 solid-color
nests, and arrange them into a 5x5 square. (A "nest"
consists of a large piece on top of a medium piece on top of
a small piece.) Set aside the medium and large black pieces
- they will not be used during the game. Place the five
small black pieces on top of five nests, using one of the configurations
shown here. (After a few games, you may want to try creating
your own opening patterns.)

THE PLAY
Each stack of pieces within the 5x5 grid represents a volcano,
and the five small black pieces represent "caps" which
keep the volcanoes beneath them from erupting.

On your turn, you may move any one of the five caps in any
direction (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally) for a distance
of one space. You may not place a cap on top of another
cap, and you may not move a cap outside of the 5x5 square.
Any other move is legal.

Moving a cap may cause the underlying volcano (if there
is one) to erupt. If a move does not cause a volcano
to erupt, you are allowed to make another move with one of the
caps. You may continue to move caps in this fashion until
an eruption does occur, at which point your turn ends and play
passes to the player on your left.

ERUPTIONS
Whenever you move a cap off of a volcano, that volcano erupts
outward in the same direction in which you moved the cap.
To execute the eruption, take the top piece of the uncovered
volcano, move it directly toward and over the cap which
you just moved, and then place the erupting piece on the volcano
(or empty space) which is just beyond the cap. Then take
the next piece off of the erupting volcano, move it over the
cap and the volcano beyond it, and place it on top of
the volcano (or empty space) which is beyond both of those.
Continue erupting pieces outward in this fashion until one of
the following occurs:

The erupting volcano is completely spent, leaving an empty
space in its place. Remember that this empty space is still
part of the playing area. Black caps may be moved into
it, and erupting pieces may land in it as normal.

The eruption runs up to the edge of the 5x5 playing field.
Since pieces cannot be placed outside the bounds of the original
5x5 square, an eruption must stop when it reaches this limit.

The eruption runs up against another black cap. Since
you cannot put any other pieces on top of black caps, they block
the flow of eruptions in much the same way that the edges of
the playing field do.

After you've finished executing the eruption, you may capture
any erupting piece which has landed directly on top of a piece
of the same size. Keep all of your captured pieces
in front of you, to be tallied at the end of the game for your
final score.

NON-ERUPTIONS
It is possible to move a black cap without causing an eruption.
For instance, if you move a cap from the middle ring of the board
to the outer edge, the uncovered volcano will not erupt, because
its pieces are not allowed to flow off the edge of the board.
Similarly, other black caps may block eruptions before they even
start. Finally, a cap sitting in an empty space may be
moved without causing an eruption, because there is nothing beneath
it which can erupt.

During your turn, you may continue to move black caps until
you cause a volcano to erupt. With practice, you can learn
how to position the caps just so, in order to capture
the exact piece you're hoping for.

SCORING
As the game progresses, you should attempt to arrange your captured
pieces into as many solid-color trees as possible. (A "tree"
consists of a small piece on a medium piece on a large piece.)
These trees are worth extra points when you tally your score
at the end of the game. You should arrange the rest of
your captured pieces into as many mixed-color trees as
possible; they'll be worth extra points as well. At the
end of the game, your total score will be tallied as follows:

7 points for each solid-color tree

5 points for each mixed-color tree

1 point for each of the rest of your pieces

You're free to rearrange your captured pieces at any time
during or after the game, in order to create the best possible
score.

ENDING THE GAME
The game ends as soon as any single player has captured one or
more pieces of each color. After the game ends, make sure
you've arranged your captured pieces into as many solid-color
and mixed-color trees as possible. Then tally up your final
score. The player with the highest score wins.

An Example Eruption

Stage 1: A black cap is moved off of a clear volcano, causing
it to erupt.

Stage 2: The top piece from the erupting volcano sails over
the black cap to land on the green volcano beyond.

Stage 3: The next piece from the erupting volcano sails over
two volcanoes to land on the blue one.

Stage 4: The next and final erupting piece sails even further
to land on the distant red volcano.

Stage 5: One of the erupting pieces has landed on a piece
of the same size. You get to capture it!

SOLITAIRE CHALLENGES
Volcano also makes for great fun as a solitaire activity.
(In fact, Kristin initially envisioned it as a solitaire game.)
Solitaire Volcano is more like a puzzle than a typical solitaire
game; the trick to these solitaire challenges lies in developing
your ability to move the black caps around, so that you'll be
able to take the specific piece(s) you desire. It may take a few
games, but once you get a perfect score you'll probably want to
tackle a new challenge (or find other players) rather than solve
the same puzzle again. These challenges make excellent training
for multi-player Volcano.

Try to capture all of the red pieces with a minimum of other
colors. You get one point for each piece you take that isn't
red. Assuming you begin with a black cap on a red piece, you
should be able to get a perfect score of 0.